Tartu

Tartu
City
Tartu
From top: View of Tartu, Tartu old town, Estonian National Museum, University of Tartu, Town Hall Square
Nickname:  Capital of Southern Estonia[1][2]
Motto(s):  Heade mõtete linn ("City of good thoughts")
Tartu Location within Europe Show map of Europe Tartu Location within Baltic Sea region Show map of Baltic Sea Tartu Location within Estonia Show map of Estonia
Coordinates: 58°23′N 26°43′E / 58.383°N 26.717°E / 58.383; 26.717
Country	Estonia
County	Tartu County
Municipality	Tartu
First settled	5th century AD
First mentioned	c. 1030
City rights	before 1262
Area
• Total	38.80 km2 (15 sq mi)
• Land	37.9 km2 (14.6 sq mi)
• Water	1.3 km2 (0.5 sq mi)  3.39%
Elevation	57.2 m (188 ft)
Highest elevation	79 m (259 ft)
Population  (2023)[3]
• Total	97,435
• Rank	2nd
• Density	2,500/km2 (6,500/sq mi)
GDP [4]
• City	€3.042 billion (2022)
• Per capita	€30,569 (2022)
Ethnicity
• Estonians	80.3%
• Russians	13.4%
• other	5.3%
Time zone	UTC+02:00 (EET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+03:00 (EEST)
Postal code	50050 to 51111
Vehicle registration	T
Website	City of Tartu

Tartu^[a] is the second largest city in Estonia after Tallinn. Tartu has a population of 97,435 (as of 2023).^[3] It is 186 kilometres (116 miles) southeast of Tallinn and 245 kilometres (152 miles) northeast of Riga, Latvia. Tartu lies on the Emajõgi river, which connects the two largest lakes in Estonia, Lake Võrtsjärv and Lake Peipus. From the 13th century until the end of the 19th century, Tartu was known in most of the world by variants of its historical name Dorpat.

Tartu, the largest urban centre of southern Estonia, is often considered the "intellectual capital city" of the country,^{[1][2][5][6][7]} especially as it is home to the nation's oldest and most renowned university, the University of Tartu (founded in 1632).^[8][9] Tartu also houses the Supreme Court of Estonia, the Ministry of Education and Research, the Estonian National Museum, and the oldest Estonian-language theatre, Vanemuine. It is also the birthplace of the Estonian Song Festivals.

Tartu is the European Capital of Culture in 2024.^{[2][10][11][12]}

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